The present invention relates to a disposable lid for a drinking cup and more particularly to a disposable lid having a retractable drinking opening.
A disposable lid is commonly used to cover a disposable beverage cup to prevent the beverage from spilling out of the cup. The lid can incorporate an opening that allows a user to drink the beverage without removing the lid from the cup. Some lids have a releasable drinking flap that may be either pushed into the cup or pulled away from the cup to form the opening. One disadvantage of this type of lid is that it is difficult to manipulate the flap with one hand while holding the cup with the same hand.
Some lids have a preformed opening. Nevertheless, such a lid is problematic because the beverage can spill out of the opening if the user is bumped or if the cup is overturned.
A lid for a nondisposable commuter mug utilizes an H-shaped flap that slides over a preformed opening, which alleviates spillage. Nevertheless, such a lid for a commuter mug is not disposable, is bulky and is relatively expensive to manufacture. Moreover, the H-shaped flap design is not feasible for a disposable lid because the disposable lid is typically manufactured from a thin plastic material that does not exhibit the rigidity required to produce an effective 11-shaped flap.
Accordingly, a need exists for a disposable lid for a cup that incorporates an opening through which a user can drink a beverage without removing the lid. The lid should prevent the beverage from spilling out of the cup when the user is not drinking from the cup. The user should be able to manipulate the lid with one hand. In addition, the lid should be relatively inexpensive to manufacture, and easy to assemble and store. The present invention addresses such needs.
A disposable lid for a drinking cup is disclosed. In a preferred embodiment, the lid comprises a cover portion having a generally circular periphery, a drinking opening in the cover portion adjacent to the periphery, a handle opening in the cover portion, and at least one C-shaped rail that protrudes downwardly from an inside surface of the cover portion. The at least one C-shaped rail forms a longitudinal channel that extends from the handle opening to the drinking opening. The lid further comprises a sliding member having a handle. The sliding member is configured to slidably fit into the channel and have its handle extend through the handle opening in the cover portion, such that when a user places the handle in a first position, the sliding member uncovers the drinking opening and when the user places the handle in a second position, the sliding member covers the drinking opening.
Through the aspects of the present invention, the user can hold the cup with one hand and, with the same hand, easily cover and uncover the drinking opening. Thus, when the user is not drinking, the user can cover the opening and prevent the beverage from spilling out of the cup. In addition, the lid helps to maintain the temperature of the beverage. In one preferred embodiment, the end of each rail is tapered so that the sliding member can snap into place, thereby allowing easy assembly.